In this article, Huntington’s central thesis is that “The fundamental source of conflict in this new world will not be primarily ideological or primarily economic. The great divisions among humankind and the dominating source of conflict will be cultural…..The fault lines between civilizations will be the battle lines of the future.”

In this article, Huntington suggests that, “A civilization is thus the highest cultural grouping of of people and the broadest level of cultural identity people have short of that which distinguishes humans from other species. It is defined by both the common objective elements such as language, history, religion, customs, institutions, and by the subjective self-identification of people.” (p. 24)

THE WESTERN/ISLAMIC FAULT LINE

Huntington asserts that “Conflict along the fault line between Western and Islamic civilizations has been going on for 1,300 Years.”

Here is a very brief summary of the conflicts outlined by Huntington:

After the founding of Islam in 627 AD, the Arab and Moorish surge West and North ended at the Battle of Tours in 732

From the eleventh to the thirteenth centuries the Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade attempted with temporary success to bring Christianity and Christian Rule to the Holy Land.

From the fourteenth to the seventeenth century, the Ottoman Turks reversed the balance and extended their way over the Middle East and the Balkans, captured Constantinople and twice laid siege on Vienna.

In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, as Ottoman power declined, Britain, France, and Italy established Western Control over most of North Africa and the Middle East.

After World War II, the West, in turn, began to retreat: the Colonial Empires disappeared and Arab Nationalism and Islamic Fundamentalism manifested themselves.

Ultimately culminating in the current conflicts that are ongoing in Iraq and Afghanistan.

WESTERN/ISLAM FAULT LINE CONFLICT DETAILS

Much of this tumultuous history of the struggles along the Western/Islamic Fault Line can be explored in greater detail by using the BBC tCivilizations tool that, “uses web technology to reveal the sweep of historical forces and the rise and fall of great empires and ideas over 5000 years in a way that no book could ever do.”

You can access the tool by clicking HERE. We encourage you to explore in greater depth the contentious history between Christianity and Islam.

Meanwhile, those peoples to the East and South of the Fault Line are Orthodox or Muslim and were only lightly touched by the shaping events to the North and West. According to Huntington, these regions are “less advanced economically and they seem much less likely to develop stable democratic political systems.” However, as we shall see in the Islamic Banking section of this blog, Dubai is playing a significant global role in the Financial, Tourism and Real-Estate sectors.

TOWARDS A UNIFYING PROGRESS CULTURE

Lawrence Harrison, Director of the Culture Change Institute at Tufts University cites his own research in an address to the Council on Foreign Relations that aligns with Huntington’s point of view with regards to Islamic economic development.

In his most recent book, The Critical Liberal Truth, Harrison examined 117 countries against ten indicators of prosperity. In describing this research he mentions that “Islam has fallen far behind economically” and that there is a Universal Progress Culture that emphasizes: Education, Merit, Achievement, Frugalitiy and Community. It should be noted here that Harrison is quick to point out the danger of generalizations across regions in his discussion.

Dr. Harrison ends in saying that these five Progress Culture values that are largely shared among Protestants, Jews, Confucians and Sikhs.

REVISITING DUBAI’S TENSION

Given the historical backdrop of the Fault Line between Western Civilization and Islam, the ensuing economic retrograde of the Islamic region and the fact that this Islam does not align with a Universal Progress Culture, the central tension that Dubai has been dealing with: Remaining true to its Arabic and Islamic roots while striving to become a leading hub in the 21st century market economy is becoming more acute.

The next seven years in Dubai will be fascinating to study as this central tension unfolds through time:

Will the Dubai’s leaders continue in their quest to accomplish Vision 2015?

Or will Dubai’s leadership revise its goals and seek refuge in its Arabic and Islamic heritage?

Or will Dubai’s leaders find a “third way” to ensure that the region continues to prosper?

Sam Palmisano, Chairman and CEO of IBM, coined the term “Globally Integrated Enterprise” in an article he wrote for Foreign Affairs in 2006.

In this article, Palmisano argues that in the international model of the 19th century, most operations were centred in their home country, with only elements of sales and distribution happening overseas. The multinational model of the 20th century—in which companies created small versions of themselves in each country—was a response to the trade barriers that arose after the World Wars.

Today the Globally Integrated Enterprise can locate functions anywhere in the world, based on the right cost, skills and environment, argues Palmisano. This new organisational form has emerged because everything is connected, and work can move to the place where it is done best.

The following short video summarizes Palmisano’s perspective on the opportunities and threats associated with leading a Globally Integrated Enterprise (3:10):

The barriers that used to block the flow of work, capital and ideas are weakening. In a flat world, there is no home and away and work will intelligently seek out the place on the globe where the intersection of expertise and cost are optimized.

Some Questions to Ponder:

How do Multinationals differ from Globally Integrated Enterprises?

What are the key opportunities and challenges associated with leading a Globally Integrated Enterprise today?

July 2, 2009

First, we want to WELCOME you to Duke University and the Fuqua School of Business. Your decision to join us in the CCMBA program comes at a time when global competence is increasingly critical to becoming leader of consequence.

In this brief video, Fuqua School of Business Dean Blair Sheppard shares his insights on how leaders of consequence develop based on mutual acceptance of responsibility on the part of both the institution and the individual:

Also, for those of you who have not yet seen our brief “While You Were Sleeping” video, please take a moment to view it now as it clearly outlines why we are in the midst of executing a strategy to become the first Globally Distributed Business school.

Now, onto the real work!

It is our pleasure to welcome you to the CCMBA Culture, Civilizations and Leadership course blog where we will be posting rich-media sources we find relevant to the topics we will be discussing in the course.

We have created separate pages that cover the following topics for your review prior to getting together in London.

Here is the outline:

The Clash of Civilizations: Click HERE to view.The Rise and Fall of Civilizations: Click HERE to view.Civilizations and their Linkage to Relational Models Theory: Click HERE to view.Defining and Identifying a Regional Culture: Click HERE to view.Leading the Globally Integrated Enterprise: Click HERE to view.Civilizations and Culture Explained Through Food and Drink: Click HERE to view.England – Timeline of Pivotal Events: Click HERE to view.Dubai – Welcome to Term 2: Click HERE to view.Delhi – Welcome to Term 3: Click HERE to view.Shanghai – Welcome to Term 4: Click HERE to view.St. Petersburg – Welcome to Term 5: Click HERE to view.

We encourage you to review the contents of this blog and to post any comments, questions or issues that come to mind as a result of having done so.

It is our sincere hope that we will begin a robust virtual dialogue via this blog that we can synthesize during our time together during each residency.